The books by Broadfoot and Johnson are clearly written accessible overview and introductions covering many aspects of assessment. Members of the Assessment Reform Group contribute to a comprehensive and authoritative overview of assessment used to support learning in the book edited by Gardner. Swaffield's book, also including contributions from many leading figures in assessment, explores key issues, draws on research and provides practical suggestions. The important relationship among assessment purposes, principles and types of assessment is examined by Harlen and colleagues. For a book from a leading international expert on assessment which is aimed at helping people to understand issues behind assessment and testing, see Black. Gipps covers many important issues and her proposal to move from a testing culture to a broader understanding of assessment is as relevant today as when first published, if not more so. In an eye-opening look at assessment which includes many portraits of teachers assessing pupils' learning, Drummond provides an important critical alternative to current objective, mechanical approaches to assessment. Assessment is seen as a process in which teachers look at children's learning, strive to understand it and then to make use of this knowledge in the interests of children. Ecclestone looks at formative assessment in lifelong learning.
Broadfoot, P. (2007) An Introduction to Assessment, London: Continuum.
Johnson, S. (2012) Assessing Learning in the Primary Classroom, Abingdon: Routledge.
Gardner, J. (ed) (2012) Assessment and Learning: 2nd Edition, London: Sage.
Swaffield, S. (ed) (2008) Unlocking Assessment: Understanding for Reflection and Application, London: Routledge.
Harlen, W., Gipps, C., Broadfoot, P. and Nuttall, D. (1992) ‘Assessment and the improvement of education’, Curriculum Journal, Vol 3., No. 3, 217-25. (Reading 13.1)
Black, P. (1998) Testing: Friend or Foe? Theory and Practice of Assessment and Testing, London: Falmer.
Gipps, C.V. (1994) Beyond Testing: Towards a Theory of Educational Assessment, London: Falmer.
Drummond, M.J. (2012) Assessing Children's Learning, London: David Fulton.
Ecclestone, K. (2010) Transforming Formative Assessment in Lifelong Learning, Maidenhead: Open University Press
For an account of how social factors affect school assessment processes, pupil performance and the interpretation of assessment outcomes see Reading 14.7, which is edited from Filer and Pollard.
Filer, A. and Pollard, A. (2000) The Social World of Pupil Assessment: Processes and Contexts of Primary Schooling, London: Continuum.
